New Day
by pixieface Lust
Summary: A new day always requires one step forward, but with every step comes the memory of something that happened in the past. You remember, you forget, but you move forward. -edit-


Hey guys! I'm back with a new fanfic after God knows how long! 2 Months? I don't know. Anyway, I've been working on this fic since..like, the middle of March and it took me so long to upload it, because I wanted it to be the best it possibly could. But this is the most I could muster. Some parts I loved the writing and the other parts, well they weren't enough but it was the only thing that I could write that was fit. You'll understand what that means once you've read it.

So, this is something sort of like Ino writing a blog. It's my longest one shot, yet! (12 pages on MS Word) but I love this story, just because it's unlike anything I have ever written before. This story also has outtakes! Because there was a part over at the end, I wasnt sure how I would write it. :D So, I removed them until someone actually _wants_ to read them.

So, please, please, please! REVIEW because it will devastate me if this story doesn't do well. No, I'm not overreacting, it really will. Because as of now, this story is my baby! :D So, without further delay...

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**New Day**

I guess 2009 is telling me to let go and move on.

For the longest time, I've been dreaming of freedom.

"_Sasuke! You're drowning me! Why can't you ever let me do things on my own?! You don't have to be around 24/7!" Ino screamed as tears started forming in her eyes. "I'm drowning." She choked silently as she sobbed to herself. She didn't want him to see her like this. No, she was utterly repulsed by even herself._

"_What am I doing wrong Ino?! What? You don't want me to care for you!?" He yelled at her even though he knew he shouldn't have. Once before, Ino suggested some anger management classes but he never gave it a second thought, now he regrets all the times he has flipped at Ino._

"_It's not that!" She bawled, "I'm not allowed to do things by myself anymore! You don't even allow Shika and I to be alone together! He's my best friend!" She dramatically poured everything out._

"_Ino, it's not that I want you to be unhappy—"_

"_THEN WHY!?" She screamed, "Let me make decisions! I need to breathe Sasuke!" She hiccuped as the tears wouldn't stop. "You used to be my oxygen. Now…you're…you're…" Ino thought it cliché to continue what she was going to say, but she knew Sasuke would want to hear it._

"_I'm WHAT?" he said his tone crisp._

"_You're carbon dioxide!" She shrieked, "…it's poison, it's starting to become poison." She said solemnly. To other people, her comparison may have not made any sense. But Sasuke new exactly what she meant by saying '_it's starting to become poison_'. He was starting to realize what he was to her. He wasn't good for her anymore._

Yet, now that I finally have it, I still have this urge to contain myself from letting loose. As much as I want to drink, meet new friends, hang out with my old friends, and all those other things, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I guess I got used to that voice in my head that never failed to nag me. Or that **watchful **_**eye**_ that never left me alone and always got me out of trouble.

"_Ino! 16 Tequila shots isn't healthy!" Sakura shrieked as she watched her girl bestfriend down another shot._

"_I can—I can walk in a…" Ino slurred holding her hands up defensively, "…straight line." She continued; eyes half open. Then the blonde tried to stand up. Not a good idea. She tripped over her own feet. Tenten and Sakura had to run to her aid quickly to help her up before she hit the floor._

"_Guys, guys! I can do this…" Ino tried protesting, pulling away from their (very helpful) hold on her._

"_Ino! Listen! You're not okay. Let's get you some water!" Sakura tried reasoning with her. "Or coffee! C'mon!"_

_Ino started shaking her head._

"_Let's sit her down, again." Tenten suggested._

"_Here, Ino! Sit!" Sakura pushed the blonde down to an armchair._

"_Whaaa?" Ino's drunken question made her look undisciplined._

"_She's going to pass out if we don't do something quick." Tenten whispered to Sakura._

"_I know, I know…where the hell is everybody?!" Sakura looked around to find that their friends weren't with them, and out of sight._

_It was a girls drinking night, and thank God the boys were not invited because Ino would have looked bad in front of them. And so would the rest of the girls._

_Finally, Temari came out after a minute or so, she found Sakura holding Ino up by the shoulders and Tenten attempting to fan her. Ino was fighting the shutting of her eyelids but looked as if she was failing miserably. The two tried everything to keep her awake, but they couldn't leave her alone._

"_Guys! What happened to her?!" Temari quickly rushed over._

"_What do you think?" Sakura snapped._

"_Ice? Water? Coffee? Olive Oil?" the darker blonde started shooting suggestions._

"_Yeah, all would help." Tenten told Temari. She nodded then set off to get Ino all that she suggested. On the way to getting Ino's much needed items, she crossed paths with Hinata and told her to try and help Ino out. Hinata did have a lot of experience babysitting her drunken friends. Can you say Kiba Inuzuka?_

_Of course it was inevitable for the Hyuga, since the two were best friends._

_Hinata sat on the arm of the chair and started patting Ino's back, she looked up at Sakura who was fuming. She was so mad at Ino for getting herself drunk and making herself look imprudent._

"_Calm down Sakura, she needs you to be her friend right now." Hinata said to the pink-haired girl._

"_I know, I know. But it's just so not Ino. This was so reckless of her."_

_Thirty minutes later, the blonde was passed out on the couch. She had already thrown up so things started getting better for her. But she was still in such a horrible state._

"_We can't let her parents know. They're going to flip. If anything happened to their baby girl—!!!" Tenten didn't bother to continue._

"_Who's going to fetch her?" Temari asked._

_The girls all paused to think of someone._

"_Sasuke!" Sakura suddenly said as she grabbed her phone out of her back pocket._

_The girls were all for the idea to call Sasuke. He'd know what to do. He's never let Ino get to extremes before and he always took care of her; so, calling him would be the next best thing. But Hinata was still pro for the idea of calling Ino's parents. That on the other hand would have been an adult decision on their part to make._

"_Sasuke?" Sakura said to the mouthpiece._

"_It took you awhile to call." He hissed into the phone._

"_What are you talking about?!"_

"_Sakura! Why didn't you call me sooner? You let Ino go on about drunk!"_

"_What else should I have done? We were trying to get her to sober up as best as possible." She reasoned._

"_Oh, and you didn't need any help?"_

"Wait. What? How the hell do you know?!" she raised an eyebrow.

_She heard Sasuke sigh over on his end, "Us guys knew you girls would be drinking. We're right across at Lee's…" he explained._

"_So you were watching us?" Sakura accused._

"_Keeping an eye out on you girls and Ino." He corrected._

"_What did you see?"_

"_As long as there was still laughing and no one was throwing up, it was still okay in terms for us guys. But when I saw you girls having Ino attempt to walk in a straight line on the street, well…I waited for you to phone me." He told her._

"_Come over quick, please? She really needs you."_

"_I'm on it." Sasuke flipped his phone close._

"_He'll be here in like 5 minutes." Sakura told the girls after the conversation. They nodded and waited for Sauske's arrival._

_--_

_The girls helped Ino into Sasuke's car. He didn't have her sit shotgun, but in the back seat._

"_Whaa—? Daa—? Uhh…Sasuke! Sasuke?" Ino slurred as she got in._

"_Just stay put, Ins." Sasuke told her. She closed her eyes and leaned back on the chair._

"_Damn, she passed out again." Sasuke said under his breath as he got into the driver's seat._

"_Ino?" He called out, "Babe, can you hear me?"_

"_What?" She replied quietly._

"_I'm taking you home." He told her._

_She began to cry. Maybe, realization hit her and she realized that she was drunk and had a headache and felt horrible, or for the sole reason she was drunk and out of right senses, she began to cry._

"_Hey, hey, why are you crying?" He said soothingly. As much as he wanted to be in the back seat caressing her, he had to be driving her safely._

"_I live with you at your place, right?" Ino asked softly._

_Sasuke grinned because he knew there were two meanings to this question. The implication of this question for drunken Ino was 'please don't show me to my dad like this'. And then, if it were normal Ino, the secondary underlying meaning would be this, 'we're always at your house, and I'm always over…I practically live there anyway'._

"_Okay babe, you're staying the night at my place. But just for now…" he told her._

_The next morning, he gave her a long talk about being responsible and not acting reckless. She thanked him and apologized to him over and over, she also did the same to her friends. But it made her happy that she knew they'd always be there to look out for her and to keep an eye out for her when she needed them most. Especially, Sasuke._

I kinda miss having it. I miss having one person's full attention every day.

"_I'm sorry that we haven't spent a lot of time together." Ino apologized to Sasuke._

"_It's fine." He pulled her into a hug._

"_Why? I have no excuse…" Ino pouted._

"_Don't worry your pretty face, babe. We can fix that." He grinned._

_Ino hugged him tighter. Sasuke kissed the top of her head as he cradled the blonde in his arms._

"_We'll do whatever you want today, and tell me any other favors you need." He gave her a smile. Ino couldn't understand what Sasuke was doing. He didn't have to make amends for anything, she did. Yet he was the one trying to make everything better._

"_You don't have to do any of this, Sasuke. I should be the one—"_

"_I want to do them, Ino." He told her solemnly._

_She didn't have to speak; Sasuke read it all in her eyes. She was asking him why._

"_Because I don't have to listen or pay any attention to anyone else but you." He answered proudly._

I miss the thrill of everything.

From sneaking out of the house and saying crazy things to my parents so that I can keep things hush-hush.

"_So? Did your parents hear anything?" Sasuke whispered as Ino hopped into the front seat of his car._

"_Hopefully not. I tried to be as quiet as possible." She grinned._

"_Good. But, I hope you won't get into trouble." Sasuke began to drive._

"_I already am in trouble. What more could they lash out." Ino groaned recalling the day's events._

"_You had a fight with your parents again, right?" Sasuke asked._

_Ino nodded._

"_Ino, you should really stop getting into these arguments with them. It's unhealthy." He told her. _

"_It's not my fault!" She whined. Sasuke chuckled, "You're supposed to be siding with me, remember?" she told him; annoyance evident in her tone._

"_Okay, okay. Tell me what happened." He said._

_--_

"_You can't ground me forever! Someday, you'll find my room empty! Everything gone and cleaned off! I'll have stormed out of the house and you'll regret all the times you've seen me miserable! You're gonna miss the times that you see me happy and smiling!" she said against her parents. It sounded as if she was the one giving them a sermon. But she wanted to try to make them feel guilty. Even though she knew by now that saying something back to her parents would only lead her into more trouble._

"_Ino! When you finally learn your lesson, we'll stop grounding you. But you haven't!" Her mom protested, "We don't enjoy punishing you, sweetheart but there's no other way! You never listen to us!"_

_Ino stormed off to her room and slammed the door shut. She called Sasuke immediately and told him to pick her up._

_--_

"_So that wasn't as bad as the fight 3 weeks ago…" Sasuke chuckled. Ino laughed along, "You got that right." She agreed._

_She had a really, really bad fight with her parents about 3 weeks ago. It was so bad that it go to the point where she was living at Sasuke's place for 2 days and at Sakura's and Shikamaru's for 1 day each._

"_Promise me you'll make-up with them as soon as you can?" Sasuke asked from her._

_She nodded, "When I'm ready. You know I will."_

"_That's my girl." He said kissing her on the top of her head._

I miss texting him late at night.

_Late at night, when the blonde found herself incapable of falling asleep one text message to Sasuke would be all she needs to find comfort. He always knew what to say and she always knew he'd be there when she felt alone. He wasn't so far away. That meant a lot to her, knowing he'd never leave._

_-I can't sleep_

_-Do you want me to come over?_

_-yeah- … -but I don't want to bother you_

_-I'll be right over._

_-you sure?_

_-babe, if you need me. I'll be there. It's late, you need to rest._

_-yeah, I'll fall asleep eventually…_

_-I'm putting on my jacket and leaving here in 2 minutes._

_-there's no stopping you now then, is there?_

_-nope._

_-fine. I'll see you in 8:)_

_-yeah. See you._

_-I love you, Sasuke=)_

_-I love you too, I._

I miss those petty fights cuz I always thought that it was our way of showing each other that we cared for one another.

"_Okay, what's the deal Drama Queen?" Temari inquired as she raised an eyebrow. "This morning you two were all lovey dovey and now you two are acting like you can't stand each other! What are you, bipolar!?" she screeched._

"_Oh shut up! Am not! And besides, I CANT STAND HIM!" Ino confirmed._

"_Bullshit!" Temari spat. Ino never heard that word be said in such a manner. She was taken aback and wasn't able to reply. "Trust me, Ino…stop bullshitting me." Temari said after awhile._

"_We're going through a rough patch right now."_

"_Honey, you're not. You're going through your on again off again petty little fights that we, your friends, just get sick and tired of after awhile." The older blonde told Ino honestly._

"_It's not like we mean to fight the way we do…" Ino trailed off, "But the best thing about this…when these things happen…well, it's when we make up again." Ino's heart smiled._

"_But fighting is stupid, Ino. Why go through it?" Temari was confused._

"_We don't break-up just to make up, y'know…" Ino altered her tone with Temari._

"_I'm just saying…you don't need rough patches because it makes things harder."_

"_I dunno, after a really big fight and then reconciling, we feel stronger as a couple."_

"_So, you're positive you'll get back together?" Temari questioned._

_Ino smiled and let out a sigh, "Honestly, Temari…we can't stand not being with each other."_

_Temari grinned, "Well I'll be damned." She chuckled._

"_He's my oxygen…or something like that." Ino laughed._

"_Shut up and stop being cheesy!" Temari threw a pillow at the pale blonde. "God Ino, if I hear one more thing out of your mouth." She joked. The two blondes started laughing._

_--_

"_Babe, I'm sorry I got ticked off so easily." Sasuke apologized staring at the ground._

"_Look me in the eye, Sasuke." Ino requested._

_Slowly, he tilted his head up to face her. His eyes were stained with tear and he was hurt. "I'm sorry." He apologized again._

"_All is forgiven." Ino smiled and approached Sasuke to give him a hug. He hugged her back, so tight that Ino thought he would never let go. And Sasuke did want to never let her go. He hated it when they fought, but he never felt so in-love with her when they made up and got back together._

I miss the parties that we attended.

_Ino was sprawled out comfortably on Sasuke's bed, she was reading her Pride and Prejudice book while Sasuke was sitting on his computer chair macbooking away._

"_So…" Ino began, the many starters of small talk._

"_Yeah?" Sasuke looked back at her._

_Ino closed her book and sat up, "So, I'm going to Rupture on Friday…" she told Sasuke silently. Apparently, this struck a nerve with the Uchiha, and now he was paying full attention to her. Ino looked away._

"_That open party?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow._

"_Well…yeah." The blonde replied. Sasuke was ready to say something but Ino quickly interrupted, in panic, "I mean! But, you know, you've never had a problem with me going to open parties before…" The blonde rambled. Sasuke knew that she was scared of what he might say._

"_Who are you going with?" he quirked._

"_Sakura, Temari, Tenten, Kiba, Naruto…" Ino counted._

_Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "I'm going to Rupture, then…"_

"_WHAT!?" Ino's mouth fell to the floor._

_--_

"_So what's your boy toy doing just standing there?" Tenten giggled._

"_He insisted to come along. I don't know what he was thinking." Ino laughed as she danced to the beat with Tenten._

"_Cute!!!" she fawned, "Sasuke's looking out for you!!!" Tenten was in glee._

_Ino smiled, "Yeah, I guess he is."_

"_He must really care for you, girlie. An open party is the last place he'd want to be in right now." Tenten told her friend._

"_Yeah, I'm a pretty lucky girl."_

"_Go dance with him!" Tenten pushed Ino toward Sasuke._

_The blonde giggled as she approached her boyfriend just leaning on the wall._

"_You know you look like an idiot not dancing…" Ino chuckled._

_Sasuke grinned, "Do you really expect me to?" He asked her._

"_No." She answered softly, "Thank you, though."_

"_Why?"_

"_You're looking out for me, I know that…and I would say you don't have to do this but, I'd sound ungrateful." She explained._

"_You're welcome."_

"_Slow dance with me?" Ino requested._

"_But it's _Forever_…" Sasuke smirked._

_Ino giggled and grabbed his hand, "Come here. We're slow dancing, okay?"_

_Sasuke grinned and went along. There was no stopping her now._

"_Cheers to more parties to come?" The blonde asked hopefully._

"_We'll see…" Sasuke answered as he swayed with her._

_Ino rolled her eyes and leaned in to kiss him on the lips. "…for more parties to come…?" she repeated after she drew herself back._

_Sasuke chuckled and leaned in closer, barely above a whisper he told her, "for more parties to come." And he closed the gap for one of their memorable kisses the whole time they were together._

I miss our childhood days. I miss writing letters.

"_Remember 2 years ago in 8__th__ grade?" Ino asked as she rested her head on Sasuke's chest._

"_What about it?" Sasuke asked as he put an arm around her shoulder._

"_How I was obsessed with One Tree Hill and The Notebook?"_

"_Yeah." He chuckled._

"_And that was the summer I wrote you a letter every day." Ino told him._

"_Yeah. You only told me when summer was already over." He sighed._

"_I wanted to give them to you, but it was sweeter to give together…" She decided upon it. "I didn't know that I really ended up doing what Brooke did."_

"_I have a reply for every letter you wrote…" Sasuke suddenly said._

"_What?" Ino jerked._

"_Yeah…" Sasuke said for the third time, "I just…it's not finished." He explained. "And plus, if you get to pull a Brooke, I think I'm obliged to do a Lucas." He argued._

"_Oh please, a Lucas?" the blonde questioned. She rolled her eyes when Sasuke didn't react. "Do you plan on giving them to me?" Ino raised an eyebrow._

"_I do. There's just something I have to finish first."_

"_Then I'll never get it." Ino rolled her eyes once again._

"_Hey! What does that mean?" Sasuke raised his tone._

"_4__th__ grade." Ino stated sternly, "If I remember correctly, you said, and I quote," Ino began 'Don't worry Ino! I made you the perfect Valentine's Day Gift! You're gonna like it as much as I like your gift to me! I just have to finish it and make it extra nice and special!' She quoted._

_Sasuke blushed._

"_And about…7 years later. Still none."_

"_I…" He began._

"_You what?"_

"_I can't believe you still remember that." He chuckled._

"_Well, believe it, cuz I do."_

"_Let me make it up to you…" Sasuke suggested._

"_How can you possible make it up to—mphff" Ino's last few words were cut off by Sasuke suddenly pressing his lips against hers. He chuckled and then pulled away, he gave Ino a kiss on the top of her head and went on inquiring, "Was that okay?"_

_Ino rolled her eyes, "You're not getting off that easily." She blushed._

_He chuckled, "Alright…that was an IOU, I'll give something, don't worry." He winked._

I miss my soap opera-esque love story.

_When their friends were asked about 'Sasuke and Ino':_

"_I haven't encountered any other couple quite like you two…" Sakura commented.  
Sasuke and Ino rolled their eyes and laughed at this statement._

"_You guys are like a volcano waiting to erupt." Kiba laughed._

"_Sasuke and Ino…love hate." Tenten giggled._

"_She's like my little sister. All grown up already. But there seems to be nothing bothering her and she's become so happy. They're good for each other I guess." Shikamaru lazily continued._

_Neji grinned and said, "I never knew Sasuke would be capable of giving so much to someone other than himself."_

"_They're really good for each other, y'know?" Temari stated casually, "Even though that's not necessarily a good thing for us." She laughed._

"_Sasuke and Ino?...Well let's just put it this way, their relationship is a struggle for dominance." Gaara explained._

"_I've never seen those two happier than when they are together." Choji smiled into the camera._

_Hinata nervously played with her fingers and refused to make eye-contact with the camera but was still able to muster up a, "They always look like they're having fun, like they have a word solely their own, it's just the two of them and all the rest don't seem to matter."_

"_So much youth in the power of this couple!" Lee did a thumbs up to the camera along with his blinding grin._

"_Sasuke…well, we didn't start off in good terms, and I never really liked Ino…" Naruto began, then he sighed, "But now Sasuke and I are best friends and I love Ino to death!" Ino suppressed tears at this statement, "The bastard is a better person because of Ino—I've never seen him more outgoing or happy. And Ino, as well became a better person, not because of Sasuke, but for Sasuke. She worked on her…flaws and made them her advantage, she bloomed into someone worthy of a respectful relationship and partner, as if no one was good enough for her and then Sasuke became that person who was good enough to be with Ino. They both took a leap of faith, and now, they're inseparable. They're…always and forever." Naruto grinned. He was obviously pleased with his words._

_After hearing what Naruto had to say, everyone suddenly came on screen and yelled, "Happy 3 Years Anniversary!"_

"_Wow." Ino breathed, "It's been that long. I can't believe it."_

"_It's been that long." Sasuke confirmed._

_Ino at that moment didn't even bother fighting back her tears, she let them all out._

I have to learn that Life hasn't ended yet. And I have so many things I have to do. I will move on. But every now and then I will take one step back and remember that this may be only temporary.

And more than anything,  
I hope it is.

So, I'm going to take 2009 by surprise and turn things around. Because these events can't control the outcome of my life. No, I'm going to make my own destiny.

I will move forward.  
I will work hard.  
I will get stronger.  
I will get him back.  
**I'm going to force myself to change.**

_It's for the better._


End file.
